Middle class pensioners risking health by drinking a bottle of whisky a week

Middle class pensioners are risking their health by drinking the equivelent of a bottle of whisky a week, with white, well-educated men consuming the most alcohol, a study has shown.

Despite knowing the dangers of too much alcohol, it seems that the stress of holding down high-powered jobs and social responsibilities is leading many older men to hit the bottle.

Health experts at Kings College London say that doctors should be aware that it is often professionals, many of who have put off retiring, or who still have important commitments, who are likely to have drinking problems.

As well as leading to problems such as cirrhosis of the liver and increased risk of cancer, older people are more sensitive to the effects of alcohol because the body cannot break it down as quickly.

Drinking in later life is also known to increase the likelihood of falls which can lead to serious head injuries.

“As the Baby Boomer generation become seniors, they represent an ever increasing population of older people drinking at levels that pose a risk to their health,” said Dr Tony Rao, lead author from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience at King's College London.

“This study shows the need for greater awareness of the potential for alcohol related harm in older people, particularly those of higher socio-economic status, who may suffer the consequences of ill health from alcohol at an earlier age than those in previous generations.”

One in five older people who drink alcohol are now consuming it at unsafe levels – over 21 units of alcohol for men and 14 units for women each week.

The researchers used anonymised electronic GP health records for 27,991 people aged 65 and over in the Borough of Lambeth in London.

They identified 9,248 older people who regularly consumed alcohol and of these 1,980 people drank at unsafe levels.

They found unsafe drinkers were more likely to be male, younger and have higher socioeconomic status. Men were more likely to be unsafe drinkers than women.

The average alcohol consumption was six units per week – the equivalent of three glasses of whisky. However, the top five per cent of alcohol drinkers reported consuming more than 49 units per week for men and more than 23 units per week for women, the equivalent of at least three-and-a-half pints a day for men or three-and-a-half glasses of wine for women.

Dr Mark Ashworth, study author from the Division of Health and Social Care Research at King's College London said: ‘This research highlights that as GPs we need be more aware of the risk of older people, especially men, drinking excessively.

“Reducing alcohol misuse is important to prevent premature death and serious negative health effects, such as alcoholic liver disease, which are big burden on our health system. Alcohol excess carries additional risks in the older population such as falls and confusion.’

Alcohol drinkers were also more likely to be ethnically White or Irish, while people from Caribbean, African or Asian ethnicities were less likely to drink.

People of white ethnicity were 59 per cent of the study population, but were 68 per cent of those who reported drinking alcohol and 80 per cent of the unsafe drinkers. People of Irish ethnicity were five per cent of the study population, but were six per cent of the alcohol drinkers and eight per cent of the unsafe drinkers.

Dr Ashworth added: ‘Based on our findings, the elderly who were most at risk were those from the white British population rather than from an ethnic minority, and those who were wealthier and better educated rather than those from a more deprived background.’